Philips

The Philips Hue Play HDMI Sync Box is getting a big update, with new software to add HDR10+ and Dolby Vision support among other features to the synchronized lighting gadget. Intended to expand the colors on-screen to the rest of your TV room, the Hue Sync box is also gaining integration with voice assistants like Alexa.

TV is a welcome distraction these days, and with more movies skipping the theater and making their debut on streaming platforms, making your media room more engaging seems like a good idea. The Philips Hue Play HDMI Sync Box may have an awkward name but the idea is simple: using the color-changing lights already a hit with smart home fans, expand what's happening on-screen beyond the bezels of your TV.

Philips has begun notifying users of its first-generation Hue bridge that it's time for an upgrade, after warning owners that it would be discontinuing support and new features for the smart lighting hub. Users of the Hue Bridge V1 started receiving alerts in the app this week that their cloud support was nearing the end, and the reception hasn't been entirely positive.

Security researchers proved this week that worries about the vulnerabilities of the future Internet-Of-Everything smart home were well founded. They've shown that a hack into a Philips Hue smart lighting system would allow them access to the smart hub at the center of a smart home. With this hack, malware could be implanted, and chaos could ensue.

Philips Hue is getting new smart switches, new outdoor connected lights, and adding voice control for the Hue Play HDMI Sync Box, the smart home lighting company has announced at CES 2020. In addition to easier control, Hue-owner Signify is also pushing easier installation of its custom fixtures, by adding low-voltage versions that don't necessarily require an electrician to fit them outdoors.

Even before IoT and smart homes became a thing, Philips' Hue smart lights were already paving the way for the fledgling industry. It's still one of the easiest ways to get started, given its brand name and ease of use. It has more competition now, however, and the market is more crowded than before. Naturally, the company will try to fend off rivals with a new line of indoor and outdoor lights that might debut at CES 2020 next month. Not before they get leaked entirely, of course.

Typically, when a company devotes an announcement to a single TV, it's some kind of cutting-edge behemoth that costs an arm and a leg. That isn't the case with the latest TV from Philips, which clocks in at a mere 24-inches and carries a price tag of $299.99. While that might suggest a rather unexciting TV, Philips would clearly beg to differ.

The color-changing Hue bulbs in your living room are about to get a lot more useful, with the Philips Hue Play HDMI Sync Box enabling just about any media source to get its own "surround light" show. Connecting in-between a TV and your HDMI sources, the new adapter wirelessly controls the smart lighting in the room, matching it to the colors on-screen.

The smart lighting space is getting crowded, with numerous options to give your lamps an IoT upgrade, but segment behemoth Philips Hue has a new set of bulbs and accessories. As well as expanding Bluetooth support for even easier installation, there are now decorative Edison bulbs, a handy Hue button, and a Hue smart plug all arriving in time for the holidays.

Philips has launched a small projector on crowdfunding website Indiegogo called PicoPix Max. The product boasts a small, highly portable size, enabling users to easily carry it from one location to another without having to deal with convoluted mounts or excessive cables. The pico projector runs Android TV, enabling users to directly download and use a large number of video streaming apps.

Philips Hue bulbs are getting a Bluetooth upgrade, opening the door to easier installation without requiring a hub. One of the earliest smart bulbs on the market, Hue's new bulbs have so far used Zigbee for mesh networking, a system which has both strengths and drawbacks.

Philips Hue smart bulbs inadvertently cut off from the network could be a problem no longer, with Lutron launching an Aurora dimmer accessory that also prevents accidental switch-offs. Hue bulbs are now a mainstay of many smart home installations, however they typically come with one lingering problem. For the bulbs to work, the power must remain switched on.